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Military operation in Ukraine

Mobilized Ukrainian soldiers surrender upon any opportunity — Russian commander

As Lieutenant General Apty Alaudinov noted, there have been no cases of foreign mercenaries surrendering into captivity lately

MOSCOW, August 15. /TASS/. Mobilized Ukrainian soldiers surrender to Russian troops upon any opportunity, Deputy Chief of the Russian Armed Forces’ Main Military-Political Department, Akhmat Special Forces Commander Lieutenant General Apty Alaudinov told TASS on Friday.

"Upon any opportunity, the mobilized soldiers – they can hardly be called mobilized because they are caught like dogs on the streets, beaten and forced to go to the frontline – they make a decision upon any opportunity to surrender and we register such cases everywhere," the commander said.

There have been no cases of foreign mercenaries surrendering into captivity lately, he added.

As Russian defense circles told TASS earlier, desertion has been a major problem in the Ukrainian army. The number of cases opened on deserters reaches actually 20,000 a month. Forcibly mobilized Ukrainian soldiers are frequently denied military leave so that they do not desert their military units. The absence of adequate command and control and motivation, and also "meat grinder assaults" are the most frequent reasons for AWOLs or surrender into captivity by Ukrainian soldiers.

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Military operation in Ukraine

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